TEENAGE FANCLUB & JAD FAIR

ALBUMS

SINGLES

Geographic are extremely proud to present Words Of Wisdom And Hope, a natural and freespirited collaboration between American primitive artist and musician, Jad Fair, and West of Scotland boss-rockers, Teenage Fanclub. It is accompanied by two non-album cuts which show-off just how 'on' these sessions were.

For TFC, it's the most liberated they've sounded since back in the day with A Catholic Education and Bandwagonesque; for Jad, it's his most focused pop music since his group, Half Japanese, cut classics like Charmed Life and The Band That Would Be King. Together they seem to have encouraged each other to hit on something that already exists in both their musics, and to keep hitting on it, like the best part of a song over and over. This warped take on a minimalist concept seems to have led to a weird timelessness, like those slightly over-exposed joyful moments in David Lynch films (...it's the fire brigade and everything's ok) or when you're in a cafe, slowly drifting away when suddenly you hear Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers strike-up with 'Why Do Fools Fall In Love', and you think, 'what year is this?... because actually I don't care.' But let's try to root these magical, slightly out-of-phase recordings down in some facts.

Firstly, most hipsters will already have already made the connection between Teenage Fanclub and Jad Fair; but just in case you need reminded, Jad did the artwork for the CD version of their fantastic Everything Flows single in 1991. Soon after, Jad was in Glasgow recording with The Pastels. The session took place in Teenage Fanclub's studio and Norman Blake and Gerard Love were as ever, players. Dig out This Could Be The Night and you'll see. Over the past few years Jad seems to have spent quite a lot of time in Glasgow, playing music and exhibiting in a dental practice / art gallery where Norman's wife Krista works. Naturally while Jad was staying at Norman's, they started off some music ideas, which ended up spilling over into freewheeling recording sessions with all of TFC swapping instruments and remembering that simple ideas are sometimes best. As the sessions progressed, Katrina Mitchell from The Pastels got the call for vocals and some drums - on Near To You she provides the neat hook-line.